


Beginning, The

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Post Bartlett Administration, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-03-10
Updated: 2005-03-10
Packaged: 2019-05-15 19:13:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14796341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: A romantic story about Josh and Donna.





	1. Beginning, The

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

**The Beginning**

**by: Dee**

**Pairing(s):** Josh/Donna  
 **Rating:** MATURE  
 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. His. Only if he screws up their relationshipthis season then I'm stealing them and we are all running away to Mexico.   
**Summary:** A romantic story about Josh and Donna.  
 **Feedback:** The thing that makes me check my hotmail account threetimes a day.   


"Come on Florida!"

"Donna they already called Florida. We lost Florida."

"Are you sure?"

Josh glared at her

"Okay, you're sure. It's just that I had this hunch. Actually, it wasmore like a vision. I closed my eyes and there it was. An orange. Iwas convinced that it meant we were going to take Florida."

"We lost Florida, Donna."

"Hey." Sam stepped into the office and immediately turned toward theTV.

"Tell me good news Sam."

"We lost Florida."

"Knew that."

"We're waiting for Pennsylvania. Right now it's too close to call."

"Knew that too."

"That's all I've got." Sam sat down in Josh's visitor chair andwatched the numbers scroll along the bottom of the screen.

Josh couldn't look anymore. He was seeing some of the districtsprojected in Pennsylvania and it wasn't looking good. And if theydidn't take Pennsylvania, that was it. It was over.

"Come on Pennsylvania!" Donna shouted at the TV.

"You know we don't need Pennsylvania," Sam pointed out.

"Yes we do," Josh corrected.

"No, I did the math. If we take Oregon, Washington, New MexicoArizona and Utah then we don't need Pennsylvania."

"Come on Utah," Donna shouted.

"Donna will you stop that. We're not going to take Utah."

"We might."

"Let me guess, you closed your eyes and saw Donny and Marie."

Donna pouted a bit. "Josh, I have a hunch."

"Well I have these numbers. And the numbers say we're not going totake Utah!" he shouted.

She crossed her arms over her breasts. "You know what you are?"

"Oh here we go again with Deputy Downer."

"You are! Don't you want to win?"

"Yes, I want to win. I would love to win. But you need to face factsDonna …. we're lucky it's this close," he finished quietly. Samturned and met his eyes and the truth was in his face as well.

Donna looked between them and felt the tension that had been in herstomach all day turn into a sick hopeless feeling. If they lost thenit was over. Everything was over. She wasn't ready for that.

"I'm going to find Margaret and root for Pennsylvania."

"Fine. You should do that." Josh watched her leave and kicked hisfeet up on the desk, his eyes still glued to the numbers while hehoped against hope that a miracle would happen. Silently, he urged,come on Pennsylvania.

"She's worried."

Sam had a knack for pointing out the obvious.

"I know." He just didn't know how to fix it. Or maybe he did.

"So have you guys had the talk yet?"

"What talk?" Damn they were down in Bucks country by five points.They weren't going to take the state. Finally, finally it wasstarting to sink in. They were going to lose.

"You know, the what happens if we don't win talk. Between you andDonna."

"No."

"Maybe that's why she's worried. She's uncertain about her future."

"I'm working up to it," Josh said. "It's not like I don't have aplan. I have a plan. I just…"

"You're just afraid she has a plan too."

"Yeah."

"We're not going to take Pennsylvania, Josh."

"I know."

"If you want to keep her in your life, which I'm absolutely certainyou do, even if you aren't sure, then you need to have the talk. Youhave to ask her, Josh. You can't just expect she'll know…"

"I know," he insisted. "I'm going to do it. I just wanted to wait andsee. I'm not quite the downer everyone thinks I am."

Sam nodded and stood staring at the TV until he couldn't watch it anylonger. "We're not going to take Pennsylvania."

"Yeah."

"It's been a hell of a run."

"Yeah."

"Go find Donna. Talk to her."

Josh nodded and watched Sam leave. Two minutes later all threenetworks and CNN called Pennsylvania for the other guy.

Donna walked into his office and stood in the doorway. He could seeher eyes were filled with tears. Normally, any overt sign of emotion,especially from Donna, made him queasy. This situation, however,called for tears. He got up from his desk and opened his arms.

Immediately, she was in them and he was holding on to her like he wasnever going to let her go. And if their little talk went according toplan, maybe he wouldn't have to.

"I didn't really have a hunch about Pennsylvania," she sobbed intohis shoulder.

"No? No visions of Amish men wielding their plows."

"Not one."

"A vision wasn't going to save us Donna."

She pulled back from him and used his crumbled tie to wipe the tearsfrom her cheeks. "You knew didn't you? You knew we were going tlose."

"I didn't know for certain. I had some hope. The numbers werechanging every day. In the end we just couldn't beat the thing."

"But he's fine!"

Josh smiled sadly. "Yeah you know that and I know that, but thepublic… here, why don't I just take the tie off and you can blow yournose with it."

"Don't be ridiculous." She sniffed a few times, then took a lookaround his office. This office where she had spent some of her besttime with Josh. This office that he was going to have to give up tsomeone else. It didn't seem fair. Or right. This was their officeThis was his job

"So I'm thinking we need to talk."

She looked at him. He had a weird face. It was his nervous faceMaybe he was as nervous about the future as she was. But she doubtedit. No doubt Josh had plan.

"About what?"

"The future," he said ominously.

The sick feeling in her stomach grew worse.

Josh walked over and closed his office door. He hoped it was enoughof a signal to everyone that he wanted to be alone. He sat on thedesk and Donna sat next to him, the two of them stilling facing a TVscreen that was announcing the country's next president and it wasn'tBartlet.

"So," he began.

"So," she returned. Her legs were shaking so she crossed her anklesto hold them still.

"What are your plans now?"

Uh oh. That's not the question he was supposed to ask. "Plans?"

"Yeah, you know a job?"

The sick feeling of dread turned to outright panic. She hadn't linedup a job! She had been waiting for him to tell her where they weregoing. It wasn't possible that he was thinking about not taking her…wherever he was going. Was it

Ohmygod. They had lost the White House and now she was losing Josh.It was too much to take in at once. Her first thought was to runscreaming from the room. Okay, probably not going to help thesituation. Her next thought was to salvage some pride. "Sure. Ofcourse. Yes, I have… actually several things lined up. You didn'tthink I would leave something like this to chance." Idiot. Fool.Idiot. She couldn't believe she had left this to chance or Josh forthat matter.

"Oh." Damn it. Sam was right. He waited too long and now it seemed asif she was planning on leaving him. No way, he thought. He wasn'tlosing the White House and Donna. He had a plan. "So what kind of jois it?"

"It's a … a… an assistant job."

"You could do better than being some bozo's assistant."

"Oh, I don't know. It's worked out pretty well for me these last fouryears."

"Seriously, Donna…"

"Seriously, Josh. I'll be fine. It's not like you have to worry aboutme. I mean I'm not your responsibility." But he was mine, shethought. He always had been.

"No, I know that. It's just that we've been together for a long time."

"Yep."

"And we work really well together."

"Most times."

"All of the time. You're an amazing… assistant."

"I am." She looked at her feet. "So what are your plans?"

"I have a plan," he announced.

Donna smiled. Of course he did. One that apparently didn't includeher. Was he nuts? Did he honestly think he could make it through aday without her? Who would wake him up in the morning, who wouldsave him from himself when he opened his big fat mouth, who would bethere to not get him coffee?

"I'm going back to Connecticut. Did I tell you that my mother movedto Florida?"

"No, she did. She has condo and a new boyfriend. They play bridgetogether with this other couple and they take ballroom dancinglessons."

"I know. What's up with that?"

"I think it's cute."

"Whatever. Anyway, she gave me the house. She didn't want to sell it,and she hoped that one day I would … I don't know, want it. So I'mgoing back there."

"I think that's good."

"You do?"

"Yes.

"I think you would like Connecticut. It's really… green."

"I'm sure it's a really nice… state."

"I got a job teaching at this private college that's not too faaway."

"So you're going to teach."

"Politics."

Donna sighed. "Guess you don't need an assistant for that."

"No." Okay, just do it. Tell her about the plan, he toldhimself. "But there is this other thing. I'm going to write a book."

"A book?"

"Yeah. You know, covers, pages. My picture on the back," hsmirked. "A book."

She frowned in confusion. "Josh, you're not going to do one of thosetell all…"

"No," he stopped her. "No. It's going to be more of a campaignstrategy book. Sort of a playbook on how to get someone elected tooffice in this day and age. I'll reference the Bartlet campaign, butnothing personal. I've already talked to the President and Leo. Theythink it's a good idea."

Josh a writer. It was hard to grasp.

"Anyway, there is going to be a tremendous amount of researchinvolved. I really have no idea how to go about writing a book. Sam'the writer, but I want to try. I think I can do this."

"You can do it," she assured him.

See. That's why he needed her. She had faith in him. Like his motherdid. Like his father had. He was a man who believed that he wascapable of anything. Still, it helped to have someone else tell himthat he was right every once and a while. "I'm going to need help.Someone to organize the research, compile my notes, help me withlayout."

"Sounds like you need an assistant." She couldn't wait to see the house where he grew up.

"Yeah, you know one?" He tilted his head toward her and smiled.

"Well, there is Ginger."

"I don't think Ginger likes me. She's always rolling her eyes ateverything I say."

"That's because you say some pretty stupid stuff sometimes. Whatabout Bonnie?"

"Nah, she's too mean. Oh, but hey I know. Maybe you could not takewhatever job you had lined up. Then you could move with me toConnecticut and help me work on my book."

"Maybe."

"And grade papers… because come on, you know if it's me doing it, noone is ever going to get an A."

For the first time that day, the sick feeling was gone. They hadlost, yes, but she was going to get to keep Josh. And if she werehonest with herself he was far more important than any electionresult. Unfortunately, there were now a ton of issues to settle.Donna was nothing if not a forward thinker. At least when it came toJosh.

"You're not going to make much as a professor Josh. And I doubt thatthe advance on a book written about campaign strategy, even if it isby you, can be much. How are you going to pay me enough so that I caafford to live in Connecticut? All that green comes at a price, Ihear."

Josh took a deep breath. This was phase two of the plan. Since phaseone had gone so successfully, he felt he was ready to take the nextstep. "You're right. I can't pay you much."

"You don't pay me much now, Josh. How are you going to pay meanything?"

"Here's the thing. This house, where I grew up, it's really big."

"You want me to live in your house with you?" Ohmygod.

"The thing is I don't know how it could work any other way. I meanI'm going to need you on hand all the time. That's they way it is fous writers, we just do it when the mood strikes. And this way youwon't have to pay rent. And then I can afford to pay you. It's a hughouse. Plenty of space. You can have your own room, with your ownbathroom."

"You want me to live in your house with you," she repeated althoughthis time it was more like a statement as if she was trying to getused to the idea. "You don't think that might be weird, Josh?"

"Why? It's not like we haven't done it before."

He was referring to the summer she helped him recover after theshooting. She supposed it was true. "But you were sick then."

"So. I won't be so crabby this time." Come on Donna, he urgesilently, take the plan. Work with the plan. It was a good plan. Thatwas going to lead to another good plan, but he needed her to agree tothis first.

"You and me."

"Yes."

"Living together."

"In a big house."

"In Connecticut."

"You said yourself it's a nice state."

"And I'll work with you on the book."

"With time off of course. You know an hour here or there when youneed it."

His face had changed from before. Nervous face was gone. In its placewas goofy smug face. She loved that face. It never failed to make hersmile. Oh, who was she kidding? Of course she was going to do it."

"You think this will work?"

"Absolutely. It's all part of the plan."


	2. Beginning, The 2

 

**The Beginning**

**by: Dee**

**Pairing(s):** Josh/Donna  
 **Rating:** MATURE  
 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. His. Only if he screws up their relationshipthis season then I'm stealing them and we are all running away to Mexico.   
**Summary:** A romantic story about Josh and Donna.  
 **Feedback:** The thing that makes me check my hotmail account threetimes a day.   


* * *

"Come on Donna, we're going to be late," he called up to herapartment window. The Cherokee was already loaded with her clothesand personal items. She was just supposed to be doing a last minutecheck.

The movers had already taken his stuff. The house in Connecticut wasstill mostly furnished with his parent's things so he wasn't too surwhat he was going to do with the furniture he had bought over theyears, but he figured they could sort all that out once they were upthere. He'd made Donna sell her heap of a car on the assurance thatit was never going to make the six-hour trip. She wept over her oldfaithful friend until he told her that he would make sure to pay herenough so that she could afford a car payment.

Then she asked if that meant any car payment. It seems she waspartial to convertibles.

"Late for what?" she shouted down to him.

She had a point. "I want to miss the traffic."

"It's ten o'clock in the morning on a Saturday in February. Whattraffic?"

Another good point. "But…"

"Chill Josh. I'll be right down."

It's just that he was anxious to get started. They had spent the lasttwo weeks attending goodbye parties. They waived farewell to CJ whowas headed back to the west coast, then to Sam who was taking sixmonths off to sail around the world or some such crazy thing. Toby,bless him, left a note and was gone the next day without a word. Thenthere was the Bartlet's party. The president and Mrs. Bartlet hadseemed more relieved than anything else. There were the officeparties, the official parties, and the small get togethers withfriends. It was a never ending bawl fest for the women and Josh wasconvinced if he had to say goodbye to one more person he was going tlose it.

Donna, like clockwork, burst out into tears every time she had to saythe words. It was a wonder she had any tears left. No doubt she wasupstairs now bawling her eyes out while hanging on to her roommateand promising her that she would call her everyday, which let's faceit wasn't going to happen. She couldn't afford the long distance.Josh wasn't paying her enough.

He checked the contents to make sure they were secure and muttered tohimself about how much stuff one woman could have, then got in thedriver's seat. He strived for patience. A second later he hit thehorn.

"Donnnnnnaaa."

Like magic she was standing next to the car now with a sourexpression on her face. Probably not the best way to start this nextchapter of their life together. Karin was standing behind her, tears,shocking, running down her face. In her arms she held one of thefluff balls.

Donna opened the passenger door and set her purse down then turnedback to Karin. "I'm going to miss you."

"Me too."

"I'll call."

"Me too. You're sure you know what you're doing?"

Josh turned then and saw Karin glowering at him. What the hell had hedone? "Hey, I'm giving her a job and roof!"

Karin just scowled at him and clutched the monster animal closer toher chest

"Certainly won't miss the damn cats," Josh muttered under his breath.

"I hate goodbyes," Donna cried and threw arms around her friend.

Oh geez. There she went again.

"I know. Me too. We won't say goodbye. We'll just say … later."

Josh rolled his eyes. It sounded like he was in the middle of a badepisode of Dawson's Creek. Not that he had any idea what that showwas about.

"Bye, Karin. Bye Snuggles. Tell Cuddles I'll miss her." Finally, shegot in the car. "Don't say a word, Josh."

"Kay…. Snuggles."

"Josh!"

"Not a word. I swear." He gave a negligent waive to Karin then hitthe blinker to pull into traffic. Donna meanwhile brushed away yetanother downpour of tears.

"You're not going to cry the whole way to Connecticut are you?"

"I can't believe you haven't cried at all," she accused. "Don't yofeel any sense of loss? These were our friends, Josh."

"And they are still our friends."

"It was our life," she whispered thinking it had been a happy one.

"Yeah. And it's over. I guess I hadn't realized that you haven't beenin politics long enough to know that this is the nature of thebusiness. You win, you lose. You do a job, and then you move on tanother one. No one stays in politics forever. Accept for JesseHelms."

Donna watched the DC scenery zoom by her window. "Do you think wemight be back some day?"

He did. It was part of his plan.

"You're going to like Middletown. It's this really quaint town, veryold fashioned, you know artsy stores and stuff like that. Not too farfrom Danbury."

She turned to him then with a watery smile. "I know. I'm going tlove it. Okay. I'm ready."

*****

Ohmygod. "This is your house?"

"Yeah," he said a little nervously. "What do you think?"

It was after five and the sun had just about set. The drive had takelonger than any trip Josh had ever made on his own. Donna hadinsisted they actually stop for lunch rather than grab fast food andshe had needed three, count them three, bathroom breaks. He hadwarned her about the super big gulp.

What did she think? She thought that as a little girl she had dreamedof a handsome prince, who would one day sweep her off her feet andtake her to a house that looked just like this one. Then she starteddating and quickly got over that fantasy.

It was a massive colonial set high on a hill apart from many of theother homes in the area. Painted white with black shutters framed bya wrap around porch it looked arrogant and hearty. A lot like Josh,she mused. Huge oak and maple trees, now bare from winter, surroundedit and Donna could only imagine the picture it would make comespring.

A large front lawn covered with leaves sloped to the bottom of thehill where Josh had stopped the car.

"I think…" Donna didn't know what to think. She thought that Josh waswrong. That this wasn't his house. It was hers. She knew it. She feltit. She had never been so sure of anything as she had been in herlife that she had been destined to live in this house. "It's nice,she finally managed to say knowing that any adjective would pale insignificance to this great home that seemed to be waiting for her.

"It's not the house where Joanie and I were born… after the fire…well, none of us really wanted to go back there. So Dad found this.It was a hike to his practice, but Mom liked it. There's a garden outback."

"A garden," she whispered reverently.

He shifted the car into drive and took them up the hill to the driveway that ended at the two-car garage attached to the house. Hereached for the glove compartment and took out a remote. "Mom mailedit to me."

Donna whipped a similar one out of her purse. "She mailed me one too.Just in case you lost yours. Does your mother know you or what?"

He scowled at her then the button and the door lifted. Josh pulledthe car in and Donna was practically jumping out of her skin to getinside.

"You want to unload your stuff or do you want the tour first… or doyou need to you know… again."

"Pee, Josh. It's called peeing."

"Yes but I hate when you say it like that."

"There is no other way to say it Josh. It's peeing. We're going to beliving together now. You're going to have to get used to it."

She was right. They were now officially living together. A mix ofear and excitement shot through this system. He could do this. "Justso you don't do it around me."

"I'll try to contain myself. But for now I don't have to pee." Shewatched him grimace again and smiled. "I want the tour."

He took his keys out and unlocked the door leading to a mudroom, amudroom complete with a full size washer and dryer. Very cool. Thistook them into the kitchen area, which was massive. Tile flooringgranite counters, stainless steel appliances, a sub zerorefrigerator… it was like walking into Emeril's kitchen. Copper potshung over an island with a dual sided porcelain sink. "Josh this isamazing. This is like a professional's kitchen."

"Yeah, well Mom said she left the pots, a decent set of knives, andsome flatware."

Donna could see through the glass-covered cabinets that they werefilled with plates, salad plates, bowls, glasses, wineglasses. "Yeah, she left a plate or two."

There was a breakfast nook off the kitchen with a small table andchairs, perfect for morning coffee. Then he led her to the dinningroom, which was covered wall to wall in an Oriental rug that Donnawas sure she had sunk two feet into.

From the dinning room he took her to the library. It was a man'sroom. The walls were covered from floor to ceiling with books.Buster leather chair sat in one corner and an old desk with an emptychair sat in the other. Donna knew that's where Josh's chair from thoffice would go. It was his father's.

The next stop was a living room more comfortable than formal withlarge overstuffed chairs, a sectional sofa, and a huge entertainmentunit.

"There is a powder room off the living room for you know…"

"Peeing?"

"Yeah," he grimaced. "I'll show you the upstairs."

Off of the foyer was a staircase that spilt the house. Donna triednot to gape at the size of the master bedroom. Currently it was awoman's room, with rose carpeting and a matching duvet.

"I'm going to put my stuff on the bed," Josh said as if he suddenlyrealized how feminine the room was.

"Oh why? This room is so pretty."

"You like it like this?"

"For you… probably not. And you can probably add some browns and darkgreens to offset the rose. It will end up looking manly."

"You think?"

"Manlier."

"I'll take it. You're room's down here." He led her down the hallpassing a linen closet and two other spare rooms. Her room was at theend of the long hall with an adjacent door leading to her ownbathroom. As soon as she walked in she knew it.

"This was your room."

"How did you know? Mom put all my stuff away."

She could smell him. He was in the air somehow, in the walls, in thecarpet. Definitely, Josh's room.

"If you don't like it you could take either one of the others, I justthought… because this one had the bathroom attached…"

"I love it." She did love it. It would be like sleeping with hisurrounding her. She walked into the room and pulled aside a curtain.She could see an expansive backyard and a tire swing tied to a rope.The image of a small red headed little boy swinging on it fearlesslyappeared instantly in her mind.

"I had a cleaning crew come up last week. So all the sheets andtowels and things are clean. I didn't show you the rec room in thebasement. That's got a pool table and a poker table…"

She wasn't listening. She was trying to take it all in. She wanted toabsorb this house. She could practically feel the warmth oozing fromthe wallpaper-coved walls; feel the love seeping up from the carpetedfloors. It was a special place. And she was going to live here withJosh. Nothing had ever seemed so right before.

"Okay last stop. I need to show you our office."

Suddenly, something occurred to Donna. "You're rich."

"Huh?"

"You're rich. You're family… this house. I don't think I ever knewthat about you. I mean I know you went to Harvard…"

"And Yale."

"Which takes money. You drive a Grand Cherokee, which really isn'ttoo flashy."

"Hey, it's black. It's totally cool."

"Whatever. Now that I see this house…. you're loaded."

"I wouldn't say loaded."

"You're like Mr. Money Bags."

His cheeks flushed. "I have some… but I'm not…."

"Can I call you Sugar Daddy?"

"Okay knock it off," he warned. But Donna continued to giggle. "So Ihave some money. Don't think this means we're renegotiating yoursalary."

"I wasn't thinking about my salary."

"Good."

"I was thinking about my next birthday present," she saidcheekily. "Show me the office."

There was another set of stairs that led them to the third floor. Theattic had been converted into a huge open space. Near an archedwindow sat an old fashioned double desk with two chairs and computeon each side facing each other

"It's beautiful," Donna said rushing up to it, running her hand alongthe old wood which she guessed was mahogany.

"I actually found it in DC and had it shipped up here. I thought wemight need something like this."

They needed nothing like this to write a book. "Good thinking."

He smiled, seemingly pleased that she approved.

"That's it. That's the house."

No it wasn't a house. It was a home. Their home for now. "It'sperfect."

"You know my mother said you would like it."

"Your mother knows I have good taste. So what's next?"

"Unloading your stuff or food."

They looked at each other. "Food," they agreed.

"For our first night, I'll cook," Josh offered magnanimously as theytrotted back down the stairs to the kitchen.

"Okay. I want mushrooms and green peppers on my pizza."

"Not the green peppers Donna, I hate peppers."

"So only get them on half."

"Yeah, but they always…"

"Slide on to your side," Donna finished. "Get over it… Sugar Daddy."

"I'm not losing that any time soon am I?"

"Nope."

"Just checking. Welcome home, Donna."

"Welcome home, Josh."


	3. Beginning, The 3

 

**The Beginning**

**by: Dee**

**Pairing(s):** Josh/Donna  
 **Rating:** MATURE  
 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. His. Only if he screws up their relationshipthis season then I'm stealing them and we are all running away to Mexico.   
**Summary:** A romantic story about Josh and Donna.  
 **Feedback:** The thing that makes me check my hotmail account threetimes a day.   


* * *

"I want a spoiler.

"Donna, it's a rip off. You're paying for nothing but a decoration."

"So. I want my car to look pretty."

Josh rolled his eyes. "Fine."

"Fine," she said huffily. "And I want the white."

"Donna can I just say this one thing."

"You've said more than one thing, Josh. You've said multiple things."

"One more thing then. You don't want the white."

"I want the white," she said stubbornly.

"Let her have the white, buddy," Even the car dealer was starting tget annoyed.

"Okay, okay," he said backing off. "It's just that white shows thedirt."

"So I'll wash it."

"Fine."

"Fine." Feeling like she had won, Donna smiled. "I'll take it iwhite with the spoiler."

"Maybe we could just look at the gray."

"Josh!"

"Fine. White. She wants the white. It's her car. It's not my car."

"Exactly." And it was going to be her very first new car. A small twodoor Saturn. It was the only car they could agree on because Josh hadrefused to pay her salary if she didn't buy American made.

"You'll have to wash it like every weekend."

"I'll wash it for you lady," Tom the car salesman offered. "I'll comeover to your house just to wash this car, just so you can have the white."

"See," Donna noted. "Tom the sales guy supports my decision."

Tom the sales guy was trying to make a sale, but Josh kept his mouthshut. If she wanted the white she could have the white. And when shecomplained about having to wash it all the time, he would onlysay `told you so' maybe one or two hundred times.

"I'll put the order in and you can come back next week to pick it upThen we can do the financing and everything else then."

"Great," Donna beamed.

"Come on," Josh said pulling her back to his car. "I'll take you todinner to celebrate."

****

They decided on Luigi's, which reportedly had the best Italian foodin town. The fact that Mr. Chen was the owner and chef didn't seem tofaze Donna.

"Does he know he's Chinese?"

"Yes."

"Kay. I want the manicotti."

"Josh Lyman! Look Kim, it's Josh." An elderly Chinese man emergedfrom the kitchen complete with a white apron and chef's hat thatlooked as if he'd spent the day cutting people open rather thancooking. In his wake, was their waitress, a presumed relative of Mr.Chen's.

Josh stood up and shook his hand. "It's been a long time Mr. Chen.How is business?"

"Can't complain. You remember my daughter Kim."

He didn't, but he nodded and shook her hand too.

"Oh," Mr. Chen smiled. "And this must be Mrs. Lyman. Your mother didnot tell me you got married."

"I didn't. This is Donna Moss she's my…"

"Ahh. I understand. No need to say another word." He shook Donna'hand. "Any friend of Josh Lyman's is a friend of mine. Josh's fatherhelped me get my license many years ago. In return all he wanted wasfree desert… for life." Mr. Chen laughed at the memory. "I miss himvery much."

"Me too," Josh agreed.

"So Miss Moss what would you like to eat."

"The manicotti."

"Ahh. It's my specialty. I'll bring two."

"Bring mine with meatballs," Josh added.

Mr. Chen patted Josh's stomach. "I'll bring you two meatballs. That'sit. Life in Washington has made you soft."

With that Donna burst out laughing.

Chagrinned, Josh sat down again. "Donna, try to contain yourself willyou?"

"Sorry," she chuckled trying to catch her breath. "You know we'vebeen here for a week and Mr. Chen is maybe the fifth person who hassaid something nice about your father."

"He was really respected in this town."

"Does it make you nervous? Trying to fill his shoes."

"Nah. I just hope that one day they fit."

Donna eyed him speculatively. "Josh why did you come back here?"

"I told you, to teach and write the book. Which by the way we arestarting first thing tomorrow."

"I've been ready. You're the one who was all dried up creatively,"she said in a manner that suggested he was really being lazy.

"It was all that lifting and moving we had to do."

"Mr. Chen's right. You've gotten soft."

"I'll have you know…"

"Oh spare me your feats of weight lifting my luggage."

"That one suitcase was a hundred pounds, Donna. Easy."

"Whatever. So we start the book tomorrow. Good. And classes startnext week. I don't get that. Hasn't the winter semester alreadystarted?"

"Because of my schedule they worked around me to fit in the requirednumber of hours in a half of a semester. Two days a week, three hoursa session, and two Saturday sessions."

"Three hours. How can anyone possible talk for the three… Oh, I'msorry I forgot who I was talking to."

"Funny."

"But I don't believe that's it Josh. You came back for somethingelse."

Kim arrived with their food and for a moment they were distracted bythe rich smell of garlic.

"This is amazing," Donna moaned around a forkful.

"Told you."

"You're dripping." Donna took her napkin off her lap and reachedacross the table to wipe the sauce from his cheek. After a few swipesshe caught herself. It was something she had a done a million timesin the past. Josh was a very sloppy eater, but for whatever reasonthis time it felt more familiar. More intimate.

Their eyes met for a second and a message was conveyed. Donna wishedshe knew what it meant

Living together was both surprisingly normal and a little strange. Inmany ways they fell into their old patterns of living together thatthey had developed during the summer they spent getting Josh back onhis feet. She made the coffee, because Josh sucked at it. He poured.He got the front page. She started the day with the Funnies. Thenthey switched, but not before he had already told her what was on thefront page and she had read out loud all the funny Funnies. She madelists of chores that needed to be done, made Josh do all the heavyones, then crossed off the things accomplished at the end of eachday. Josh moaned and groaned about having to do the chores andgrumbled if she crossed off something that he did. She did thegrocery shopping because Josh could not be trusted to purchase theappropriate brands, but he was required to put them away. She madedinner every other night. Josh collected several take out menus forhis night to cook. He took primary control of the remote until doubtedwas able to successfully capture it. Typically she would get fortyminutes of the Gilmore Girls before Josh realized he was watchinggirl show, and the strategy to recapture the remote would commence.

All of which was perfectly normal. It was the other stuff thatsometimes made it difficult to sleep at night. Like the time shecaught him walking from his bedroom to the hall linen closet lookingfor shampoo wearing nothing but a towel. Or the time he asked her ishe was wearing a bra under her T-shirt one night when they weresitting next to each other on the couch. And then there were thelooks. Sometimes she would catch him just looking at her as if hewanted to say something, but then he wouldn't.

Like now.

Shaking off the strange mood, she thought back to her earlierquestion. "I think you have an ulterior motive."

"You think?" he asked although she was right. It amazed him howperceptive Donna could be at times. And then there were times that itdidn't amaze him at all. She simply knew him better than most people.

"Josh."

That was her don't try to avoid me by playing dumb tone. See, he knewher too. "I wanted to come back home because my roots are here. Iwanted to establish myself. That's all." There was more, but hewasn't quite ready to layout all the elements of the plan quite yet.

"Okay."

"In fact, we've been invited to a party next weekend."

"We?"

"Me, but you've got to come." Josh struggled for a reason. "It's partof your duties."

Which made no sense, but she let it go for now. "Who is havingparty?"

"Senator Lustig. Do you remember him? He retired before the midtermsso…"

"I remember him. Sweet old man. He looked like Senator Stackhouseonly he was a lot less cranky."

"That's him. He's doing a cocktail party, fund raising thing sofigured what the heck."

There was way more than that going on, but Donna decided to let itdrop for the moment. Obviously, Josh wasn't ready to tell hereverything. But he would.

"How much a plate?" Donna was thinking about the down payment for hernew car.

"Don't worry about it."

"Josh," she warned. "Just because I call you Sugar Daddy doesn't meanyou can be…my Sugar Daddy. I can pay my way. How much?"

"Five thousand."

"So that's all you, right?"

He nodded. "Right."

****

"Senator Lustig, good to see you again."

"Josh Lyman how the hell are you?" He greeted Josh with a handshakethat made Josh cringe. He really was getting soft. This guy had to belike seventy.

"Good Senator. And you remember…"

"Is this little Donna?" Donna smiled as he took her hand. "So you twofinally tied the knot huh. There were rumors you know. Especiallyafter the shooting."

"Uh…" Donna really didn't know what to say to that.

"Thank you for inviting us," Josh said. "Looks like a good turn out."

"It is. There are a lot of people here I want you to meet, Josh. Alot of influential people in the state party. Why don't you getyourself a glass of champagne and I'll take you and Donna on therounds."

The former Senator walked off and Donna glared at Josh.

"What?"

"Why didn't you tell him we're not married?"

"I'll tell him." A waiter glided by them and Josh snatched twoglasses from the top. "Drink up, this is stuff is costing me about ahundred bucks a glass."

"You're here to shmooze."

"Donna…"

"Admit it you're shmoozing. You don't think I recognize Josh inshmooze mode. `Looks like a good turn out, Senator,'" she mimicked.

"Okay. I might possibly be shmoozing."

"And you brought me here as girl cover."

He hesitated. That wasn't exactly correct, but it was easiestexplanation right now "Yes."

"Josh, do you see what I'm wearing."

Yeah. She looked really good. It was short black whispy sort ofthing. With a scarf. The scarf was really sexy

"So?"

"So! Do you know how long it's been since either one of us had adate?"

"I seem to remember you dating someone named Clifford. It wasClifford wasn't it because sometimes I think it was Marvin and well…"

"Josh. We're not going back there. Anyway, I was hoping we could… youknow… cruise."

"You wanted to cruise for a date at fund raising event?"

"Helloooo, who comes to fund raiser?"

"People who believe in a cause," he answered.

"Rich people who believe in a cause."

"According to you I'm rich. And I believe in a cause."

"So what are you saying I should cruise you?"

Did cruise mean have sex with, because Josh was all for that. Whoa,he told himself. Put a lid on that thought. Clearly they weren'tready for that part of the plan if Donna had worn that dress tocruise for other men.

"I'm saying…" Absolutely nothing. He could think of absolutelynothing to say.

"Forget it. Like I would get a date anyway with your hand on my backthe whole night."

Immediately, he removed said hand. "That bothers you?"

"No. It's just a sign."

"What kind of sign?"

"A proprietary kind of a sign. A, she's my woman back off, kind of asign."

Instinctively, he felt the need to put his hand back on the small ofher back.

"Oh my God. I thought it was you. And it is."

Donna watched as an overly made up woman in a tight red dress rushedtowards them pointing a finger at Josh. "Sherry."

"You know this woman," Donna whispered in his ear.

"Be nice, we're shmoozing remember." To Sherry he said, "You don'look a minute different from the last time I saw you."

Donna had to struggle not to roll her eyes.

"Oh I hope not. The last time you saw me I was buck naked."

Donna coughed on her champagne.

"Oh don't worry dear," the older woman said. "That was all done along time ago. Now I'm Mrs. Houston. You remember Dave Houston, don'tyou?"

"He owns the pharmaceutical company outside of town."

"That's the one."

"Congratulations."

"Thank you. I did well. And you, we were all so upset when you goshot. Do you remember that?"

"Vaguely."

"And they kept showing it again, and again on the TV. I thought he'sdead. Josh has to be dead. But you weren't dead and you didn't die."

"No he didn't." At this point Donna took the opportunity to link herarm with Josh's. "Josh aren't you going to introduce us?"

"Uh… sure…Sherry this is Donna Moss. She's my…. uh…. Donna this isSherry Houston."

"Charmed," Sherry said blowing an air kiss. "So is it true? You knowthe rumor is already spreading."

"Is it?"

"Yes, and I think it's grand. Simply grand. Well, I see Buffy makingher way to the crab cakes. Poor dear, can't stop filling her faceI'll try to head her off before it's too late and they are all gone.Tah tah."

"Tah tah," Donna sang. "You're kidding me right. You slept with thatwoman."

"A hundred years ago."

"And the last time you saw her she was naked?"

"I broke up with her over the phone," he said sheepishly.

Donna just shook her head. "So is what true?"

"The book. I'm sure she was referring to the book."

"She thinks a book on campaign strategy is grand."

"She's a very excitable woman."

"Did you hear your voice just then."

"Pretty high."

"Castrati high, Josh. You're going to tell me eventually. I can wait.You think I can't wait. I can wait."

He was counting on it.


	4. Beginning, The 4

 

**The Beginning**

**by: Dee**

**Pairing(s):** Josh/Donna  
 **Rating:** MATURE  
 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. His. Only if he screws up their relationshipthis season then I'm stealing them and we are all running away to Mexico.   
**Summary:** A romantic story about Josh and Donna.  
 **Feedback:** The thing that makes me check my hotmail account threetimes a day.   


* * *

He couldn't breath. Having become completely familiar with thesensation over the last two years it wasn't as completely alarming asit might have been to someone who was realizing for the first timethat he couldn't breath.

Josh had been there before. And this time he knew he wasn't reallythere. He was dreaming. He wasn't dying. He just needed to remind hislungs of that. They sputtered and gasped. They rejected the air thathe wanted to grab hold of, so he tried harder.

Familiar scenes flashed by around him. A red strobe light. A loudsiren. People running and pushing each other out of the way. Hethought they shouldn't push each other. That wouldn't help. Thecame, what he knew to be, the death sensation, a horrible feeling offalling within yourself.

But he wasn't there. This was all just happening in his mind. Hesimply needed to ride it out.

Wake up, he told himself. Wake up and breath.

"Wake up, Josh. Wake up!"

Springing up from the bed he grabbed his chest and sucked in deeplungfuls of air.

Donna grabbed hold of him by the shoulders to steady him. "Breath. Inand out. In and out. Slowly."

He followed her lead until his breathing finally returned to normal

Donna stroked his cheek. "Do you still get them often?"

"No," he whispered harshly. "It's been months. I don't know what…"

"It was that woman. Sherry. She kept harping on you dying. Twit."

He smiled painfully in the dark. "Maybe. It wasn't so bad this time.I know I'm dreaming now so it's easier to come out of it."

"Stay here. I'll get you some water." Donna got up from the bed andwalked to the bathroom. He watched her and thought she looked like anangel. She was wearing a long sleeved white nightgown, her blond haircascading over her shoulders. A shaft of moonlight spread across theroom creating an eerie blue effect that seemed to make her glow."You look like an angel," he whispered to her when she came into the room and handed him the glass.

She smiled shyly and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Do you want totalk about it?"

"No." He took a sip of the water and leaned back against theheadboard

"Josh the doctor said…"

"I know, but really I'm okay. It still sucks but it's not asconsuming. I know it's a dream so I have control."

"Okay." She took the glass from him and set it on his nightstand. Shewas about to leave when he grabbed her hand to stop her. "You used tostay with me after I had one."

She did. She would hold him as tightly as she could until he fellasleep in her arms. She didn't question it or think about theimpropriety of holding on to her boss in the middle of the night. Shejust did it without him having to ask because she knew that he neededher and he knew that he needed her. It was simple then.

This wasn't so simple. "Do you want me to stay?"

He did. He wanted to pull her close and kiss her lips and tell herhow long he had waited for just this moment. Reaching out he brusheda hair from her cheek. Then he wrapped his hand around her neck andpulled her closer. "Yeah," he whispered as her mouth grew closer tohis. "I want you to stay."

"Josh…no." Donna used her hands against his T-shirt covered chest topush herself away. "Not… tonight. Not like this. You're not … I meanyou're vulnerable right now and…you just had this nightmare. I couldbe anyone."

"Donna you're not anyone." But he let her go, feeling stupid in theface of her rejection.

"Just… hold the thought. Okay?" She got up from the bed andpractically sprinted to the door. She had never wanted anything somuch as she had Josh's kiss, but she didn't want him to kiss her justto shake off the dregs of a bad dream. She wanted more than that

When she got to the door she turned to face him again. "Okay?"

He was staring at her with a brooding expression. For a moment shewas tempted to say hell with waiting for the right moment and crawlinto his arms.

"Okay," he finally said with a nod. He smiled a little then. "Go tsleep, Donna."

She smiled and blew him a kiss. It would have to be enough for now.

*****

Ring. Ring.

Josh reached blindly for the phone ringing in his ear. It had takehim a while to get to sleep after Donna's departure. So he couldpretty guarantee that he was about to snap the head off the person othe other end of this phone

"What?" he barked.

"You're late."

Like a Pavlovian dog, Josh immediately bolted upright. "I'll be therein ten minutes. When's staff?"

He heard Donna chuckling on the phone and suddenly it all came backto him. He was no longer the Deputy Chief of Staff, he no longerworked at the White House, and there was no earthly reason why Donnashould be calling him on the phone at… he checked the clock on hinightstand… eight in the morning.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm calling you on the phone like old times."

Her voice was in stereo and he raised his head high enough to see herstanding in the doorway with a cell phone pressed to ear.

"Why are calling me on the phone?" The better question was why washe still talking into the receiver.

"I thought this was a good idea. You know re-establish old patterns.You've been slacking on the book, Josh."

"I haven't been slacking!" he shouted. So loud Donna had to pull thereceiver away from her ear. Finally he got the point and hung up thephone. Then he laid back down the bed.

"Don't go back to sleep on me Josh. You need to get up, shower,dress, and meet me downstairs for coffee. Then we're going to get towork. Serious work. No more paper airplane competitions or wheeliechair races. And buy the way I so won that last race."

He covered his face with the pillow. "Go away!"

"Josh." She was about to walk in the room when he sat up.

"Don't come any closer."

"Why?"

Because the sound of her voice in his ear first thing in the morninghad made him hard.

"You know that thought?"

"The one from last night?"

"Yeah, I'm still holding it. Let's just say it's very … firm … in mmind right now."

He watched her blush and smiled despite his early morning arousal.She was always so easy to fluster when it came to sex. Maybe that washis problem. Maybe he hadn't been making his position exactly clearenough. He'd brought her here because he couldn't imagine his lifewithout her in it. He had very specific intentions about their futureand had assumed the she was on the same page

He wanted them to live together for time, get used to each other iagain in a non White House atmosphere, and then gradually move intothe physical side of things. As far as he was concerned he was beingthoughtful, considerate, and restrained

Now he was thinking maybe he should jump her. From behind, he decidedincase she pushed him away like she had last night. Her not beingattracted to him wasn't an angle he had considered. They hachemistry. It was there in the way they talked together, workedtogether, even walked together. He was positive it would be therewhen they made love together.

Mostly positive.

She hesitated for a moment and he could see her eyes fall to his lap.Then she seemed to catch herself looking and averted her eyescompletely. "I'll get the coffee started," she said before shebolted.

Oh yeah, he thought, she was definitely interested. He just needed tobide his time and wait for the right moment. It had been stupid ttry something last night. He just hoped that the right moment camein like … two or three days. Otherwise, he wasn't too sure how muchlonger he could hold out.

*****

"You're doing it all wrong."

"Oh really?"

Donna recognized the tone and quickly altered her statement. "What Imean is, I think you're taking the wrong approach."

He was pacing behind her rattling off points while she translatethem into fluid sentences on the computer screen. Her fingers movedlike lightening over the keyboard and he wondered about the kind oftalent it took to translate, "You know what I mean," into "The keyelement to any successful campaign is the candidate's ability trelate to his or her constituents," in a matter of seconds.

The fact that she did it so easily unnerved him just slightly. Thefact that he had made absolutely no headway with her physically inthe last two weeks since he had decided on a course was onlycompounding his mood. The fact that it was his fault for not havingthe guts to rock the boat pretty much put the nail in the coffin.

"My approach is wrong?"

"Yes. You're making it sound like a text book when I thought youaudience was the public at large…"

"I see," he cut her off. "And how many books have you written before?"

"Josh, I'm not trying to…"

"No. No. Please tell me about your vast and superior knowledge in theart of either a, campaign strategy or b, successful book writing. Ohthat's right you have none!"

"Ding, ding, ding."

"What's happening now?"

"I just rang the time out bell."

"The what? The what bell?"

Donna stood up and stretched out her arms, then faced him with a verycool expression. "The time out bell Josh. It's the bell that I get toring when you cross the line from being your normally pushy,demanding arrogant self, to just plain mean."

"There's a bell for that?"

"I was offering good advice," she insisted.

He sighed knowing she was right. Knowing that he was just …frustrated. For the hundredth time he wondered if he should justcome out and tell her how he feels. Tell her that he can't sleep atnights anymore because he wants her. He couldn't even look at her forlong periods of time because he ended up wanting her.

None of that, however, was her fault.

"I know."

"This book is supposed to be about letting people inside the innercircle of a campaign and the strategists who engineer it. Insteadit's reading like textbook for "How to Get Your Guy Elected: 101"

Josh read from the screen the last few paragraphs she had typed. Shewas right. It was stiff. It was dry. Hell, he wouldn't read this.

"So how do we fix it?"

"We need to make it more personal. We need to jazz it up with realstories. And juice. It needs some juice, Josh."

"Like what orange?"

She glared at him. "Do I have to ring the bell again?"

"What kind of juice?" he asked obediently.

"People want to know the story behind the story. Do the strategistsdisagree? How do they handle that? What if a strategist doesn'tparticularly like a candidate? And then there is the job itself. Tellthem about the bus tour. About what it's like to sleep with yourknees curled up to your chest, and eat two day old fast food, andsmell like…"

"I never smelled."

"You smelled Josh. I know. I was the one sitting next to most of thetime."

"Okay," he encouraged her, liking the idea. It would be a hell of alot more fun to write about all that. "What else."

"You can talk about the relationships that develop given the intensecircumstances. Remember Kathy and that guy Steven…"

"Oh yeah. Hey, remember when she threw coffee mug at him and brokehis nose."

"Right. That's good stuff Josh. That's what people want to readabout."

He considered it. "And I can do all that without making it a sleazytell all book right?"

"I think so. But when we're done we'll read it and make sure itisn't."

"Okay," he said excitedly. "Let's do it. I'm ready."

He ran back to the computer but stopped when he saw that she wasn'tfollowing. "Let's go."

"Can't."

"Why not?"

"I'm on break," she said tapping her watch. "The bell… it's multi-purposeful."


	5. Beginning, The 5

 

**The Beginning**

**by: Dee**

**Pairing(s):** Josh/Donna  
 **Rating:** MATURE  
 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. His. Only if he screws up their relationshipthis season then I'm stealing them and we are all running away to Mexico.   
**Summary:** A romantic story about Josh and Donna.  
 **Feedback:** The thing that makes me check my hotmail account threetimes a day.   


* * *

"No way." They were sitting on the couch together and he was reachingfor the remote when Donna moved it to her other hand out of his reach.

"Come on, Josh it's funny."

"Donna I'm not watching a show about a group of pathetic singlepeople on a boat trying to get it on for money."

"I think they get naked."

He considered this for a minute. "It's network television. They can'tshow anything good. Change the channel."

"But this is a show we can both empathize with."

"How do you figure that?"

"Josh, we're pathetic single people," she informed him gently.

"We're not single," he replied automatically. As soon as the wordswere out of his mouth he realized what he had said. Just because hedidn't think of himself as single didn't necessarily mean that shedidn't either. Maybe she'd let it pass.

"We're not?

Okay she wasn't going to let it pass. "I just meant… you know… we'reliving together."

"But we're not sleeping together."

But in his opinion that was just a matter of time, so it essence itwas like they already were sleeping together. "What ever you say."

"Josh are you sneaking into my room at night and having sex with mewithout me knowing it?"

"Hah…. yeah like you wouldn't know if I was… Do you want me to?"

She tossed a pillow at him and was satisfied when it hit his facewith a thunk. Not one to let such an offensive move go unpunished heretaliated with another pillow strike, which resulted in another andanother until they were wrestling on the couch, which naturallylanded them both on floor

Josh let out a woof as he landed on his back with Donna on top ofhim. "Okay, I give, I give."

Donna secured his arms above his head, which left her braless, albeitsweatshirt covered, chest, pressed against his and her mouth only afew inches away from his mouth. The temptation was overwhelming. Dit, she thought. Just kiss him and end this sexless stalemate theyseemed to have entered. Since that night after his nightmare, she hadbeen waiting for him to make another move. But every time she sensedhe was ready to pounce he always pulled back.

Of course she hadn't made a move either. There was that one time inthe middle of the night when she had made it halfway down the hall tohis room before she turned back, but she didn't think that countedbecause he didn't know she had done it.

So this was it. She was going to do it. She was going to take bull byhorns and let him have it.

Ding Dong.

Okay that was some kind of joke, right? She hadn't decided to kissonly to have the doorbell ring.

Ding Dong.

Josh looked at her with a bemused expression. "You get the impressionwe've stepped into a bad sitcom staring us?"

Donna laughed comforted in the knowledge that at least he had thesame thing on his mind that she had on hers. It was definitely a stepin the right direction.

"I guess I should get that."

"You are on top."

So she was. On top of him. She moved her hips a little and heard himsqueak. So that thing pressed against her hip was exactly what doubtedthought it was. Oh yeah, this was good. This was definitely the rightdirection.

Ding Dong.

Together they looked toward the foyer.

"Maybe whoever it is will go away," Josh suggested.

"Maybe they've got the wrong house."

"Maybe it's a burglar and we shouldn't open the door anyway."

Donna smirked. "That's dumb, Josh. Burglars don't ring doorbells.She got off of him and made her way to the door.

Probably the only person in the world who could be forgiven forinterrupting her big moment with Josh was standing on the other side.

"Sam!"

"My boat sank," he announced.

Donna hugged him and Sam thought that there was nothing so nice ithis world as a hug from Donna. He felt like he had come home.

"Come in, come in. Josh, it's Sam."

"Go away!"

Sam stopped short.

"Don't mind him," Donna explained. "He's just in a mood. Really he'svery exited to see you."

"No I'm not. Why aren't you in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean?"Instead of here interrupting what was about to be a ground breakingkiss between him and Donna, Josh finished silently.

"His boat sank," Donna said taking Sam's bag.

"What are you doing?" Josh asked looking at the bag in hand.

"I'm taking his bag upstairs to one of the guest rooms."

"Sam's not staying," Josh said. "Right? You're not staying."

"Okay," Sam said although he had the look of a puppy who had justlearned he didn't get to sleep inside with the people.

"Of course he's staying, Josh."

"Donna!" Josh tried to convey the message that it was going to behard to have wild unbridled sex for the first time with Sam in thenext room.

"Josh!" Donna returned her expression stating that she had understoodhis message but it was too damn bad because Sam was a friend and hewas staying.

Josh sighed.

Sam looked between the two knowing that they had had one of theirtelepathic conversations but was a little uncertain of theoutcome. "Donna won that one, right?"

"Come in side and have a seat. I'll get you a beer."

Sam smiled.

"I always win," Donna whispered into his ear before she walked offwith his bag.

Sam didn't doubt it.

"So you remember Ken and Beth."

"No," Josh stated taking a sip of his scotch. They had finished the beer but Sam was still too wound up from his adventures to call it anight. Since Josh knew he wasn't getting any sex tonight anyway hefigured getting drunk was the next best thing. Sam was already halfway there.

"Sure you do. Ken and I were roommates at Princeton. Anyway herestored this all wood sail boat. It was beautiful. Perfect. Yar."

Josh looked over at Donna who seemed as pleased as punch to donothing but listen to Sam tell his stories. She was curled up on thecouch next to him he wondered if she knew that her thigh was touchinghis. "What the hell is yar?"

"Philadelphia Story. Cary Grant, Katherine Hepburn. `My she wasyar,'" Donna quoted.

"Kay," he replied still not getting it but now no longer caringbecause along with her thigh, her shoulder was touching his shoulder.

"So were about ten miles out to see off the coast of Bermuda when Kenand Beth start up again."

"Uh oh," Donna interjected.

"Yeah. Needless to say that they weren't the happy couple I rememberfrom their wedding. Nothing like you two. All they ever did wasbicker and complain to me about the other. I already had seriousreservations about crossing the Atlantic, but…"

Donna leaned over and whispered into Josh's ear. "Are you going totell him we're not a couple?"

"No."

"Okay." Donna shrugged and returned her attention to Sam.

"I'm on deck trying to get away from it at this point, until I hearBeth say that she's going to kill him. Then I hear Ken shout for herto put the gun down. Naturally, I'm terrified, but I have to stopthis. So I rush down below deck only to find that Beth already shotthe gun at him."

"Huh!" Donna gasped.

"Oh no. It wasn't a real gun. It was a flare gun. It missed Kenthankfully but lodged itself in the hull and began to burn throughthe wood. We were able to put out the fire, but not before it hadweakened the hull enough to start letting water in. I called theCoast Guard and they picked us up. And from the deck of the ship wewatched the Happy Couple sink beneath the water. Ken and Beth aregetting divorced by the way."

"That's terrible," Donna commiserated.

"Yeah what a stupid name to give a boat."

"Josh!"

"What?"

Donna simply shook her head at his lack of sensitivity. "I'm beat.I'm going to bed, but you boys keep talking." She got off the couchand walked over to the recliner where Sam sat. She kissed his cheekand whispered in his ear, "Don't let Josh have more than one moredrink. Good night."

"Night Donna."

She was about to head to for the stairs when Josh stopped her. "Don'tI get a kiss goodnight?"

She turned to him with a warning glare but he was undaunted. He stoodup and met her halfway.

"Josh," she growled under breath.

"What? You kissed Sam."

Not wanting to make a spectacle in front of Sam, she walked towardhim prepared to give him an innocent kiss on the cheek. Her handsrested on his shoulders and instantly she could feel his hands at thesmall of her back pressing her closer to his body. Their eyes met andthe flash of tension that suddenly ignited between them wasunmistakable and practically electric. She tried to aim for his cheekbut his head dipped and his mouth followed hers. She pulled backslightly and tried to tell him with her eyes that this wasn't a goodidea. If she did this now, kissed him here, she might not be able tostop. He might not be able to stop. Then they would end up doing itin front of Sam and that would be nothing but awkward the followingmorning.

Moving a little quicker this time she fainted right then moved leftand kissed him innocently on the cheek. "Good night," she saidpulling away and sprinted up the stairs.

Josh watched her go with a grim expression on his face. Hifrustration was nearing painful proportions. If he didn't have hersoon he was pretty much convinced he would lose his mind.

"You two haven't slept together yet."

Josh whipped around to find Sam wearing that perplexed look hesometimes got.

"No," Josh answered returning to the couch and his Scotch.

"You're kidding."

"You see me laughing."

"But you told me you were planning on asking her to marry you."

"I am."

"But you're not sleeping together."

"I wanted to give her time," Josh snapped thinking now that it hadbeen a stupid stupid plan. "I wanted her to get used to the idea ofus as, you know, a couple. Not just two people who worked together."

"Josh," Sam laughed. "I think she's used to the idea. She's in lovewith you."

"You think?" He thought so too, but there were times when that sliverof doubt left him fearful of making a move.

"Yes. I do. I think she has been for a long time. Maybe as long asyou've been in love with her. Back then, well maybe that wasn't theright place or the right time, but now there is nothing stopping you."

"Funny you should mention that because there was this moment where Ifinally thought it was going to happen."

"Yeah, and … what happened?"

"You rang the doorbell."

"Oh. Well that sucks."

"Yeah. How about another drink?"

"Donna. Donna. You awake?" He bumped into a reading chair she hadmoved into her bedroom and wondered why she had left it right in themiddle of the room. Then he looked up and realized that he hadsomehow staggered to the corner of the room. Oh well, then that madethe presence of the chair entirely sensible.

She was sitting up in bed, her blond hair practically glowing in thedark.

"Are you drunk?"

"You are awake." Following the sound of her voice he took a jaggedpath to the bed and fell on it with a thud.

"Josh, you're drunk."

"Yep." He pulled his feet on to the bed and realized he was stillwearing his sneakers. Donna probably wouldn't like him wearingsneakers in her bed. So he tried to kick them off his feet.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm sleeping with my woman!" he shouted as he missed his one footwith the other in an attempt to get the damn shoes off.

Donna had to laugh. "Your woman, huh?"

"That's right. Now, I'm a little too drunk to make the earth moveDonna, but if you did most of the work I think we could make it shakea little."

Donna got out of the bed and walked over to his side. She pulled hisshoes off and set them down on the floor beside the bed. Then doubtedused the afghan, one his mother had made, that she kept on the bottomof the bed and covered him.

"I told Sam not to let you have more than one drink."

"I didn't."

This made her smile again. Her man, the lightweight. "Go to sleep,Josh."

"Kay. You'll stay?"

Her original thought had been to sleep in his room. If she wouldn'tsleep with after a nightmare, she certainly wasn't going to sleepwith him when he wouldn't remember it the next morning. But seeingthat his eyes were halfway closed she realized that he was harmlessin his current state.

"I'll stay." She moved around the bed and crawled back under thecovers. Josh immediately turned and wrapped his arm around her waist.Two seconds later he was snoring gently in her ear.

Strange. She always figured she would hate the sound of a man snoringin her ear but instead she found it to be very comforting.

Donna closed her eyes and thought soon. Soon the right time wouldcome. She was sure of it.


	6. Beginning, The 6

 

**The Beginning**

**by: Dee**

**Pairing(s):** Josh/Donna  
 **Rating:** MATURE  
 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. His. Only if he screws up their relationshipthis season then I'm stealing them and we are all running away to Mexico.   
**Summary:** A romantic story about Josh and Donna.  
 **Feedback:** The thing that makes me check my hotmail account threetimes a day.   


* * *

"You're wrong," Josh asserted.

"How can you say that?" Sam questioned him.

"Hmmm… let me think… because you're wrong!"

Donna walked outside to the patio to drop off a plate of hot dogs anhamburgers on the grill. It was an uncharacteristically warm day inlate March. The kind of day when you wore short sleeves shirts evethough it wasn't really that warm just because you were hoping tomove spring along. They had decided in deference to the almost springlike weather to have a cook out, but Donna could already see that shewas going to need a sweater.

"What's Sam wrong about?"

"See there you go. Why do you assume I'm wrong and Josh is right?"

"I don't," she confessed. "It's just if I had said that you wereright and Josh was wrong I would have to hear about it for the nextfew days. And I would really rather not."

"And there is the added factor that she knows I'm right," Josh pushed.

"So what are you wrong about, Sam."

"Josh thinks that Jefferson's role in the push for the coloniesdeclaring independence is overplayed and not enough attention isfocused on Adams."

Donna smiled as she flipped hamburgers onto the grill. "This is scool."

"What? And make sure you put mine off to the side so you can cook itlonger."

"Yes, Josh I am well aware of your eating habits. And you need to getthe salad, the dressings, the buns and cheese."

"We don't need salad," he whined. "This is a barbeque."

"It's a barbeque with a salad Josh. And you're eating it."

"Fine," he said walking back into the house.

"What's so cool?" Sam wanted to know.

Donna turned to him remembering what she had said earlier. "Oh justthat you're not talking about current politics. You're not talkingabout policy. You're not talking about who is going to vote for whatand how to change his mind. It's nice. Granted you are talking aboutRevolutionary War history which is a little strange, but nobody evesaid you two weren't geeks at heart."

Sam chuckled. "I guess we are. So you don't miss it?"

Donna thought about that question. "I guess I miss the excitement.The suspense of whether or not we were going to win a particularbattle. Everything is pretty much routine around here. But writingthe book has been… fun. We're really good at it."

"I'm not surprised."

"Hey look who the cat dragged in!" Josh announced from the patiodoor

Donna and Sam turned just in time to see CJ smack Josh in the head.

"CJ!" Donna ran up and enveloped her friend in a hug

"So you haven't killed him yet."

"I know. Amazing, isn't it."

"Uh hello, I'm standing right here."

The two women just looked at him.

"I'm gone."

"So why are you here? I mean I'm glad you're here. Having Josh andSam was just a little too much testosterone for me to take on at oncebut now we can gang up on them."

"Somehow I let Gomer Pyle over there make me promise that I wouldstop by on my way to New York."

Donna looked at the two men who immediately went back to arguing overJefferson. "So which one is Gomer?"

"Hard to tell isn't it?"

Donna laughed and thought that this is really what she missed mosabout the White House. The people in it.

"Have you talked to Toby?"

"A few times," CJ said a bit enigmatically.

"How is he handling the transition?"

"Ummm… I don't know. He seemed… I don't know. Any way I'm going tstop in and see him after my meeting. So Sam's boat sunk."

"Yep. The Happy Couple. Apparently the couple he was with… not sohappy."

"Maybe I'll take him with me. It might be good for Toby to see Sam.So what about you? You and Josh…."

"We're good. The book is coming along. Josh doesn't want anyone toread it until we're done, but I can sneak you a few chapters if youwant."

"Excellent. And how about this house!"

"I know! Josh is rich!"

"Yo, Money Bags…" CJ shouted to him.

"I like to call him Sugar Daddy," Donna told her.

"You owe me for like… a thousand lunches!"

Josh got this pained expression on his face. "Donna will you stoptelling people I'm rich."

"A spade is a spade, Josh. Come on, I'll show you the house."

The two women went on a tour and Donna enjoyed playing tour guide.Three weeks after she had moved in Mrs. Lyman had called her to askher how she liked the house. Donna had taken the cordless phonethrough every room and made Mrs. Lyman explain to her in detail whereevery piece of furniture had come from, what every piece of art othe wall meant, where every knick-knack on every shelf had beenpurchased and why. Josh had complained about the hundred-dollar phonebill, but Donna told him to suck it up because he was rich.

"This is Josh in the master suite, but don't look because I don'tthink he made his bed this morning. And this is me down here at the end of the hall."

CJ stopped in the middle of the hall. "You have your own room?"

"Yeah." Donna considered telling her about their almost kiss a feweeks ago, and their almost …well the thing that happened rightbefore Sam rang the door bell a few days ago, but decided against it.No point in telling anyone anything until there was something to tell.

"So he hasn't asked you…never mind."

"Hasn't asked me what?"

"Nothing. I just thought… you two ….So this is Sam's room."

"CJ, ask me what?"

"Forget it. Let's change the topic entirely. I spoke with Leo theother day. He thinks Josh is a shoe in next year. He's got thesupport of Lustig who was very popular here and I think this will ba good stepping stone….and you have no idea what I'm talking about dyou?"

"A shoe in for what?"

"Wow! Look at this Oriental rug in the guest room. Is this real?"

"Yes. A shoe in for what?"

CJ turned to Donna with a sheepish expression. "State Senate. Josdidn't tell you?"

"No." A hundred things flooded her mind. "I knew he was shmoozing.did know that," she stated. The parties they had attended, the phonecalls he got when they were working that he would take downstairs,all of it pointed to … something.

Okay so he was running for office. That made sense. But why didn't htell her. That didn't make sense.

CJ was saying something, but Donna wasn't listening. She was tryingto put together all of the events of the last few months since theyhad lost the election. Josh was planning on running for State Senate.He wanted Donna to come to Connecticut with him. Why? To run hicampaign? To be an assistant? Why wouldn't he have told her that?There was no reason why he wouldn't unless he wanted her to servesome other purpose. Something that would help him in his bid for theState Senate.

That's what he wanted to ask her.

CJ must have seen the dramatic change in Donna's face. "I'll justpack up Sam's things for him since I have an idea that we'll beleaving soon."

Donna was already on her way down the stairs.

"You bastard!"

Josh was poking his hamburger and thinking that it still needed agood hour or two before it would be edible when a fire breathingDonna came storming out onto the patio.

"You snake! You scumbag! Did you honestly think I would be like surethat's okay Josh it's just my life!"

Josh turned to Sam hoping he might have some idea of what she justsaid. Then he saw CJ appear behind Donna at the patio door holdingSam's duffel bag. Her guilty face said it all.

Uh oh.

"I don't feel guilty, Josh," CJ insisted. "I do not in any way shapeor form take responsibility for this. You should have told her."

"CJ why do you have my duffel bag."

"Let's go Sparky. We're leaving."

Sam swallowed his mouthful of burger. "But I haven't finished eatingyet."

"Take it to go," CJ told him.

Sam got up and was careful to walk a wide birth around Donna whoseemed poised to inflict bodily pain on anyone who got in her way.And he bruised easily. "Thanks for everything guys," he said as CJpulled him inside the house and shut the door firmly behind them.

"Donna," Josh began.

"Don't you Donna me!" She was so mad she wanted to spit. She was sohurt she wanted to cry. The two emotions warred inside her until shethought her heart might explode. "You lied to me."

"I didn't lie."

"Don't play politician with me Josh. You and I both know you had aplan all along and you didn't tell me."

"No, I didn't. I was going to. I just wanted to…"

"What? See if maybe you can find someone else you liked betterbefore you had to settle for me."

"Donna it wasn't like that."

"Hey, I want to run for office," she mimicked him. "I'm going to neea wife. But I'm not dating anyone. Oh I know. I'll just marry Donna.She won't mind."

"That's not true."

"What's the matter? Did you get me up here and chicken out? Didseeing Sherry again remind you of all the other fish in the sea? Nowonder you didn't try anything except for those two times when youwere delirious and drunk! You don't want me! You want some postergirl wife. You don't want me." Just saying the words brought anotherrush of anguish. She covered her face not wanting to let him see whathe'd done to her. She was going to have to leave. And it would killher.

"Donna!" he screamed rushing up her and grabbing her by theshoulders. "That is not what this is about. That is not why I broughtyou here!"

"Let me go. I have to leave."

"You're not going anywhere," he insisted.

"You can't keep me here, Josh. I'm not going to marry you."

"Did I ask you to marry me?"

She dropped her hands from her face now that anger had firmly takenhold again. "No. No doubt you were waiting until the last possibleminute. When are the primaries for the State Senate race?"

"Next June but that has nothing to do with us, Donna. Will you shutup a minute and let me explain!"

Donna couldn't remember a time when he had shouted at her, reallyshouted at her like he just had. "Are you yelling at me? Becausecan tell you, now is not really the time …"

Josh closed his eyes and dug deep for some patience. Things hadspiraled out of control so quickly; he didn't know where tobegin. "Please," he said lowering his voice. "Hear me out."

He walked her over to one of the patio chairs and sat her downcareful to block her escape path incase she decided to bolt. He waspretty sure given the fury that she was in right now he had no hopeof catching her.

The problem was where to begin. He figured the only way to handlethis was to take each issue at a time. The first and most importantbeing, "You're not leaving."

She said nothing.

"Yes, I am planning on running for State Senator."

She said nothing.

"And yes I did plan to ask you to marry me."

She tried to pull out of the chair but thankfully he had enoughstrength to restrain her.

"Because I love you Donna!"

She snorted and averted her eyes. "Yeah right."

Okay, that really wasn't the response he was going for when he madethat declaration for the first time. "Let's try this again. Donna,asked you to come with me, because I didn't want to lose you. Ididn't tell you everything right away because I didn't want to scareyou. I mean we haven't even…you know."

"Who's fault is that?"

"Yours."

"Mine!" Donna was outraged.

"You pushed me away!"

"You never tried again!" she shouted.

"Because you pushed me away. I thought you needed time. I wanted youto get used to the idea of me as more than just your boss. I wantedyou to see me as…whatever. I brought you here because I wanted youwith me. End of story. I want to spend my life with you. I want tomarry you and have kids and … I don't know get a mini-van and becomea little league coach."

"And this doesn't have anything to do with your chances of winningpolitical race being greater as a married man than as a single man."

"No," he said simply.

The question is did she believe him.

"What about you?"

"What about me?" she asked suspiciously.

"Why did you come?"

Because she couldn't think of a place on this earth where shebelonged more than here… with him. Not quite ready to offer that up,she continued with her own questioning. "All the time we workedtogether…"

"In the White House with you as my assistant," he finished giving herall the answer he needed to give.

"You could have said something once."

"I thought I did. Then the next thing I knew you were datingClifford."

"Don't start on me again about him."

"But now you understand why I gave you such a hard time in the firsplace. And I sure as hell wasn't thinking about running for StateSenate back then."

Oooh. Good point. He hated Cliff. He had been completely snarkyand… "You were jealous of him."

"Yes," he said relieved to finally admit it.

He was jealous of Cliff and he wanted to marry her. Slowly it wasbeginning to sink in. "Josh I've been here for months and you neveonce, aside from the nightmare and the drunken incident which youdidn't even remember, tried anything remotely resembling a seriouspass."

"I've said stuff."

"You've been saying stuff for years."

"Right," he said willing her to understand.

"You're telling me you've wanted me for years?"

"Years might be slightly overstating…"

For the first time Donna smiled. "You've wanted me for years!" Shestood up and he backed away from her. "Not only that, but you've beenafraid to try anything because you were afraid that I didn't wantyou. This is great! I won."

"I wouldn't go as far as that."

He didn't see the big picture. He didn't realize that this madeeverything much simpler. He loved her. He said it out loud. First. Afact that she would take great pleasure in reminding him from time totime over say the next…. fifty years.

All the worry and the not knowing were over. All the games and theinnuendos were gone. It was simple. They were together. In a way itseemed as if they had always been together regardless of whom hedated or she dated. She always knew that this was how it was destinedto turn out. And now that it was out in the open they could be …really together.

Donna reached for the bottom of her shirt and whipped it off. Thenshe kicked off her sneakers. She considered pulling off her socksbut the ground was still very cold.

"Donna what are you doing?"

"Taking my clothes off."

"Okay."

"You see Josh, now I've got plan."

"You do?" he gulped when her hands moved to the snap of her jeans.

"Yep. It's called the naked plan. I think you'll like it."

The End


End file.
